BOCHUM, Germany (AP) — Bochum has turned to experienced coach Dieter Hecking to save its season, the struggling Bundesliga club said on Monday with relegation looking a strong possibility.
Bochum has just one point from its first nine games and lost 7-2 against Eintracht Frankfurt on Saturday. Hecking arrives with a contract through to the end of the season and immediately faces a tough task against champion Bayer Leverkusen on Saturday.
The 60-year-old Hecking won the German Cup with Wolfsburg in 2015 but hasn't coached in the Bundesliga since leaving Borussia Moenchengladbach in 2019, though he had stints with two second-tier teams.
Bochum started the season with Peter Zeidler in charge but fired him last month. Interim coaches Markus Feldhoff and Murat Ural jointly oversaw losses to Bayern Munich and Frankfurt since then.
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FILE - Then Moenchengladbach head coach Dieter Hecking gestures during the German Bundesliga soccer match between Borussia Moenchengladbach and Fortuna Duesseldorf, Germany, Sunday, Nov. 4, 2018. (AP Photo/Martin Meissner, File)
EVANSTON, Ill. (AP) — Nick Martinelli scored 27 points, including seven in overtime, and Northwestern beat No. 19 Illinois 70-66 on Friday night.
Brooks Barnhizer added 17 points and Jalen Leach had 16 as the Wildcats (7-3, 1-1 Big Ten) overcame a 10-point deficit. Barnhizer's free throw with 8 seconds left in OT helped seal it.
Barnhizer scored on a jumper from the paint with 41 seconds left in regulation to tie it at 56-all. Illinois led 46-36 midway through the second half.
Kasparas Jakucionis led Illinois (6-2, 0-1) with 20 points and 10 rebounds, Tomislav Ivisic had 15 points and 12 rebounds, and freshman Will Riley came off the bench to score 12 points.
Northwestern beat a ranked team in its conference home opener for the second straight season after stunning Zach Edey and Purdue last year.
Northwestern: Bounced back after losing its conference opener 80-79 at Iowa on Tuesday on Josh Dix’s buzzer-beating 3-pointer.
Illinois: This was a far cry from the Illini's 90-77 win over then- No. 19 Arkansas on Thanksgiving, which they started on a 21-6 run and led throughout.
Jakucionis was blocked out by Northwestern center Matthew Nicholson and missed on a driving layup with 39 seconds left in OT and the Wildcats leading 67-66. Nicholson grabbed the rebound, and Northwestern added two points on free throws by Leach.
Illinois committed 11 turnovers to four for Northwestern.
Illinois hosts No. 11 Wisconsin on Tuesday. Northwestern plays at Georgia Tech on Dec. 15.
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Illinois guard Dra Gibbs-Lawhorn, left, guards Northwestern guard Brooks Barnhizer during the second half of an NCAA college basketball game that Northwestern won 70-66 in overtime Friday, Dec. 6, 2024, in Evanston, Ill. (AP Photo/Erin Hooley)
